Reed-organ.



No. 689,770.' 'Patented nee. 2 4, lam.

A. L. WHITE. v REED ORGAN.

(Application led Feb. 16, 1901.)

////////////////////Amn//ZV yMlm!! UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ALBERT L. WHITE, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS;

REED-ORGAN.-

srnerrrcn'rron forming parte of Letters Patent No. 689,770, dated December 24,1901; Application iiledvebruary 1.6,*1Q1. Serial 41\l'o. 47,693. (No model.)

To all wiz/omit may concern.-

Be it known that Il, ALBERT -L. WHITE,

n a citizen ofv the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State kof Illinois, have invented a new and useful Im' provement in Reed-Organs, of which-the following is a speciiication.

This invention relates to organs.

The object of the invention is to provide meansforfacilitating access to the valves or otherparts ot' organ-actions.

A further object of the invention is lto provide means foravoiding harsh or j erky tones.

soV

`Other objects of the invention will appear more fully hereinafter.

The invention consists substantially in the construction, combination, location, and arrangement, all as will be more fully herein'- 'after set forth, as shown in the accompanying drawings, and finally pointed out in the appended c1aims.j

Referring to the accompanylng drawings,

Figure 1 is a view in transverse section of an .organ-action, showing the application there# to of'a construction embodying the principles of my invention. Fig. 2 is a detached detail .View in perspective of the foundation-board,

showing in dotted lines the openingtheref through and the iexible covering for such opening and means for securing said cover# ing to such board.

- The same part is'designated by the same kreference-sign wherever it occurs throughout the several views. v

Reference-sign A designates the foundation-board of an organ-action B, thesounding-board; D, the chamber; E,'the key; F, the valve.; Gr, the reeds; H, the mutes; J, the rod actuated by the key when the latter is depressed for unseatin g the valve F against the action of a spring o'r'otlier suitable device, (indicated at M,) and K the bellowsy communicatingwith chamber D through openings L.

. heparts so far described may be of the usual or ordinary or any suitable or Couven-- ient construction and arrangement and in the specific details'thereotl vform no part of my present invention. n y

It is important and desirable to provide means forv gaining ready access to the valvesl and Valvesprings without necessitating thevC therein.

removal of the organ-action from the case or withoutdisturbing any of the parts. complish this result, I provide an opening or passage N through the foundation-board A at a point directly underneath the valves F, said opening extending from a short'distance from one end of the foundation-board to within a short distance of the opposite end of said board and transversely of the valves and of 'a widthapproximating the length of the valves, and I provide a removable cover C for n such opening.` In practice I prefer to employ for such cover a suitable elastic material-such, for instance, as rubber sheeting--being applied to the under side of the base-board, as clearly shown. A convenient and preferable arrangement or means of attachment of said cover, but to which my in- "vention is not to be limited or restricted, is to suitably glue or otherwise permanently secure one edge of the flexible sheet or strip C,

` as at O,to the under surface of the'base-board A and Vadjacent lto and parallel with one edge of the opening N, and I detachably secure the other edge of the iiexible sheet or strip on the opposite side of said opening. A convenient` arrangement for securing the detach- -able edge of the sheetor strip is shown; but

my invention is not to be limited or restricted to such construction wherein I provide a recess or groove P in the under surface of the base-board A,adapted to receive a lockingkey Q', the function of which is to clamp the detachable edge of the ilexible'sheet or strip l The key Q may be held in place by screws R or other suitable or convenient securing devices.

The operation of my invention is as follows: When access to the valves or valve-springs is desired, the key Q is removed, thus permitting one edge of the flexible sheet C to become detached, as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 1, and permitting access through the opening N tothe valves or valve-springs, and after the desired examination, inspection, re-

pair, or the like the opening N is again closedl To ac-Y ber D at a point immediately below the valves and reeds. It will also be observed that the provision of a flexible and elastic cover enables a desirable yielding in case the escapevalve of the bellows should fail to operate properly,while at the same time the provision of the opening or passage N gives ready and convenient access to the valves and valvesprings without removal of the action and bellows from the case, thus enabling any repair or renewal or replacement of the valves or reeds to be effected quickly, easily, and conveniently.

Having now set forth the obj ect and nature of my invention and a construction embody- `ing the principles thereof,what I claim as new and useful and of my own invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is-

1. In a reed-organ, the combination with a sounding-board, keys, reeds and valves, of a foundation-board provided with an opening therethrough at a point immediately beneath the valves, and a detachable covering for closing said opening, as and for the purposeA set forth.

2. In a reed-organ, the combination with a sounding-board, keys, reeds, and valves, of ay foundation-board provided with an opening therethrough at a point immediately beneath the valves, and an elastic cover for such opening, said cover being detachably connected to said foundation-board and removable therefrom to afford access to said valves, as and for the purpose set forth.

3. A reed-organ having a sounding-board, keys, reeds and valves, in combination with a foundation-board provided with an opening therethrough at a point immediately beneath the valves, and a detachable iiexible and elastic cover for closing said opening, as and for .the purpose set forth.

4. A reed-organ having a sounding-board, keys, reeds and valves, in combination with a foundation-board provided with an opening therethrough at a point immediately beneath Vthe valves, a sheet or flap arranged to form a covering for such opening, said sheet or iiap permanently secured to said foundation;V

board at one end or side of said opening, and means for detachably securing said sheet or flap to said foundation-board at the opposite side of said opening, as and for the purpose set forth.

5. A reed-organ having a sounding-board, keys, reeds and valves, in combination with a foundation-board provided with an opening therethrough at a point immediately beneath the valves, a flexible sheet or flap arranged to form a covering for closing said opening, said sheet or iiap being permanently attached along one edge thereof to said foundationboard on one side of said opening, and means for detachably securing the other edge of the sheet or flap to said foundation-board at the opposite side of said opening, as and for the purpose set forth.

6. A reed-organ having a sounding-board, keys, reeds and valves, in combination with a foundation-board formed with `an opening therethrough, a exible and elastic sheet forming a covering for said opening, said sheet or flap permanently secured t0 said foundation-board on one side of saidopening, and a removable key for detachably holding the other edge of said sheet on the opposite side of said opening, as and for the purpose set forth.

7. A reed-organ having a sounding-board, keys, reeds and valves, in combination with a foundation-board provided with an opening therethrough and extending transversely of the valves and of a width approximating the length of said valves, said opening being located immediately beneath the valves, and a detachable, flexible and elastic sheet forming a covering for said opening, as and for the purpose set forth.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand, this 11th day of February, 1901, in the .presence of the subscribing witnesses.

ALBERT L. WHITE. 

